In the first game of the Top 16 round, Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv secured a key road victory over Galatasaray, 90-84. Hickman was outstanding with 24 points. Ohayon added 15 points, while Smith and Tyus each had double doubles.
By Amy Samin
In the first game of the Euroleague Top 16, Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv defeated Galatasaray in Istanbul, 90-84. Ricky Hickman was simply outstanding with 24 points, while Yogev Ohayon ran the game brilliantly and contributed 15 points. Devin Smith (14 points and 10 rebounds) and Alex Tyus (12 points and 11 rebounds) each had double doubles.
Maccabi’s starters were Devin Smith, Ricky Hickman, Guy Pnini, Yogev Ohayon and Sofo Schortsanitis. Maccabi took a 9-4 lead after three and a half minutes, thanks to points by Sofo, Hickman and Ohayon. The hosts pulled to within two, but Smith and Hickman combined to give Maccabi a 14-7 lead halfway through the period. Galatasaray chipped away at that lead, but David Blu and Ohayon kept the advantage with Maccabi, and two straight buckets by Alex Tyus made it 25-17 as the quarter wound down. As time ran out, the hosts scored two straight three pointers to close to within two, 25-23.
Galatasaray continued playing well as the second quarter got underway, taking the lead in the first minute and keeping it for the remainder of the period. Maccabi had trouble getting their shots to drop, though Tyus, Hickman and Smith scored to keep the deficit as low as possible. With three minutes left in the half, the home team led 39-34. Pnini scored and Blu added points from downtown, but the teams went into the break with Galatasaray holding a 47-40 lead.
Pnini opened the third quarter with points from downtown and a dish to Sofo, making it 51-45 after two and a half minutes. Former Maccabi player Carlos Arroyo sank a pair of threes to keep the hosts’ lead comfortable, but two dunks by Tyus and points from outside the arc by Smith put Maccabi within two, 61-59 with a minute and a half left in the period. Though Blu and Hickman scored, the period ended with the hosts still up by two, 65-63.
At the start of the fourth quarter Tyrese Rice put the lead back in Maccabi’s hands with points from the top of the arc, 66-65 but Galatasaray quickly reclaimed it, running to 71-66 until Hickman and Ohayon combined to make it 72-71 Maccabi halfway through the period. The hosts didn’t give up, and the lead changed hands several times until a 12-0 run put together by Hickman, Smith, Tyus and Ohayon gave Maccabi their biggest lead of the game, 84-74 with less than two minutes left in the game. The home team put up a good fight, but in the end Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv defeated Galatasaray 90-84 in the first game of the Top 16.
